Joan O'Brien Profile

while attending Chaffey Union High School in Ontario, California, she's discovered by Cliffie Stone and begins appearing on his local TV program "Hometown Jamboree" with Tennessee Ernie Ford, Tommy Sands, and Molly Bee. This leads to a successful four-year run beginning in 1954 on "The Bob Crosby Show."

marries NBC/CBS executive John Fred Meyers two weeks after her bit in Handle With Care

2 June 58

her daughter, Melissa Ann, is born in Los Angeles

59

becomes extremely close with Madlyn Rhue while filming Operation Petticoat and will be a bridesmaid at her wedding

April 59

she and Jack Meyers are a surprise twosome at Ivan Townsend Smith's party for actress Jo Morrow

May 59

she and Meyers dance every dance together at Romanoff's after the invitational showing of This Earth is Mine

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is bothered by a heckler during a performance at a Hollywood nightclub. The heckler is her husband, Meyers. Afterwards they separate.

23 March 60

obtains a divorce from Meyers in Santa Monica, California. She testifies they quarreled almost constantly, and he told her he no longer loved her. She waives alimony; her one-year-old daughter will receive $225 monthly support. Meyers will die at age 66 in 1988 in Los Angeles.

December 60

television actor Anthony George, currently seen in "Checkmate," breaks up with her

28 June 61

wins a divorce from television executive John F. Meyers for the second time in 15 months. She testifies that Meyer, arguing with her, once followed her into the wings of the Moulin Rouge while she was on stage at the Hollywood nightclub. She wins custody of her three-year-old daughter.

November 61

catches the eye of Clint Eastman

62

the minute she arrives in Manila to film Samar, director and co-star George Montgomery makes a pass at her, while still married to Dinah Shore. She threatens to return to the States immediately.

while filming It's Only Money, she goes through a bleak period due to her bad marriage and feels depressed, but director and co-star Jerry Lewis sets her head straight

Spring 62

her father dies

Summer 62

meets her future husband, Harvey Allen Godorov, while appearing in South Pacific at the Thunderbird in Las Vegas

September 62

drops out of her starring role in South Pacific; her fiancé, Allen, remains as one of the dancers

c. 63

has a romance with Elvis Presley

13 March 63

she and Harvey Allen, of Philadelphia, announce their engagement in Las Vegas, Nevada. They plan to wed this summer.

April 63

she and Allen have a row and postpone their Las Vegas wedding, which is scheduled for April 7

12 April 63

marries Allen after a stormy courtship in Las Vegas, Nevada, six months after their first meeting. He's 27; she's 24.

16 April 63

takes an overdose of sleeping pills and has to be hospitalized at Sunrise Hospital in Las Vegas

May 63

she and Allen embark on a trial separation after a one-month marriage

29 July 63

she and Allen separate

9 August 63

sues for divorce from Allen in Los Angeles. She claims he beat her and destroyed her clothing. She charges him with extreme cruelty. She asks for no alimony and wants her married name, Joan Godorov, restored to Joan O'Brien. He's 31; she's 27. Her address is 15248 Encanto Drive, Sherman Oaks, California.

23 August 63

is before the Superior Court in Los Angeles and says her Las Vegas suicide attempt was a fake to tell Allen "how disappointed and hurt he made me feel and how much I loved him." Her first two husbands, Billy Strange, 32, and John Meyers, 41, sue her for custody of her two children, Russell, 7, and Melissa, 5, and charge she neglects the youngsters and has entertained boyfriends in her home while the children were present. Their attorney, Frank W. Swann, Jr., asks to examine her wrist. She admits she cut her wrist with a razor while she was still in the hospital but confirms that she did not want to commit suicide. Swann introduced two pictures taken by Allen after their marriage showing her in semi-nude and revealing poses. She denies posing for the pictures. Allen testifies that his wife was promiscuous before their marriage and that he was intimate with her three months before their marriage, several times while the children were sleeping in another room. Even her former neighbor testifies against her, stating she treated her children with "great annoyance and lack of patience."

September 63

is voted most likely to wed actor Robert Vaughn, until she weds and sheds her number 3, Harvey Allen

16 September 63

cries when she regains custody of Russell and Melinda after a bitter Superior Court hearing in which she was required to take a psychiatric examination

18 October 63

wins a divorce from Allen in Los Angeles, testifying her husband was "very critical and hateful.” He struck her within three days of her marriage. Allen doesn’t contest the divorce.

64

has had three stormy marriages and divorces, two children, and is 5'-4" tall

c. 64

after Get Yourself a College Girl, she retires from acting and tours with the Harry James Orchestra as their girl singer, playing universities and supper clubs all over the U.S.

1 February 65

is taken to a small Hollywood receiving hospital in a coma after gulping down the contents of a pillbox at the home of actor Robert Vaughn. From there she is sent to the intensive-care unit of Los Angeles County General Hospital. Vaughn tells that she and eight other people were at his Mulholland Drive home Sunday for a party. He retired about 11:30 p.m., and the party broke up around midnight. He got up about 2 a.m. and discovered the pillbox empty. It had contained 25 to 35 tablets, he says. Then he discovered Joan in a drugged sleep in his guest room. Unable to awaken her, he took her to the hospital. Vaughn told the police Joan appeared in good spirits at the party and he knew no reason why she might take the pills. Police list the incident as an attempted suicide.

columnist Harrison Carroll tells "some happy news for a change about actress Joan O'Brien. She introduced friends at La Scala to her new husband, Dino Kotopoulis. 'And I couldn't be happier,' she says."

March 73

is named director of sales for Valley Hilton Hotel, Van Nuys, California

90s

is happily remarried and resides in northern California. She contemplates writing her autobiography.